


The Larry Project

by Hedgehog_and_frog



Category: Larry Stylinson - Fandom, One Direction
Genre: Angst, Boys In Love, Dom Harry, Elounor, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, Falling In Love, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, LGBTQ Character, LGBTQ Themes, M/M, Sub Louis, but not too much
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-02-04
Updated: 2018-03-13
Packaged: 2018-04-01 06:33:04
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 8,804
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4009516
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Hedgehog_and_frog/pseuds/Hedgehog_and_frog
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When One Direction's management makes Louis and Harry be a "pretend" couple because that's what most of the fans like, they have no idea what's in store for them. Louis already has a girlfriend, and Harry sees women every now and then. However, nobody expects what is revealed and what eventually happens, even though the other boys had their suspicions.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

"Gentlemen, have a seat," Eddy, the owner of the company Modest! Management, said as the two boys walked in. Harry and Louis sat down next to each other on the couch in front of Eddy's big desk. 

"I hope you two know why I called this meeting," Eddy continued. "Yes, we know all too well why you called this meeting," Louis muttered under his breath, crossing his arms over his chest. 

"Excuse me?" Eddy asked and raised an eyebrow. "Nothing," Louis chirped and gave the fakest smile anyone could imagine. 

"Alright, well, let's get to the point. I'm going to make you two an item," said Eddy as he took out a few papers and a pen. 

"Like a relationship?" Harry asked and crossed his arms loosely over his chest, slouching in his seat. 

"Yes," Eddy nodded as he flipped through the papers. 

"Why? Why him?" Louis groaned. 

"You two seem very popular in the fandom, and from what I've seen on social media, your coming out could start a revolution in the fandom," Eddy smiled. 

"And you really want us to do it?" Harry asked and sighed, moving his hair out of his face.

"Yes, we do actually."

"We?" Louis questioned. 

Eddy nodded and said, "Well, me and the rest of the fandom, of course." 

"The rest of the fandom and I," Harry interrupted. 

"Yes," Eddy whispered to himself, an annoyed look on his face. "So do you want to do it?" he asked. 

"What happens if we do it?" Louis asked. "What do we get out of it?" 

"You'll definitely get a raise, more followers on social media, more exposure, and if things go good-"

"Well," Harry said. 

Eddy continued with a sigh, "Yes, Mr. Styles. Anyway, if things go well, you might even get more. So are you interested? This could be fun, if you actually tried." 

"So you want us to pretend to be gay, little, happy boys in love?" Harry questioned. 

"Yes," Eddy confirmed with a soft chuckle. Louis and Harry exchanged a look, silently asking each other if they wanted to agree to this. After about a minute of having a silent conversation, both boys nodded, and Louis said, "Yes, we want to do it." 

"Good, meet me in my office tomorrow at nine and we'll talk about it. Now, get back on that bus and get some rest. You have a big day coming up on Friday," Eddy told them with a kind smile. 

Louis and Harry stood up and went to the door, Harry opening it before Eddy said, "Oh, and lads?"

"Yeah?" the two boys asked in unison. 

"Don't say anything about this until tomorrow, got it?" 

With a nod of their heads, Harry and Louis walked out of the office, going to the car and driving back to the tour bus. 

• • • 

"So, you two are dating now?" Liam asked from his bunk, laying on his back while playing with a soccer ball. 

"We're not dating," Harry said from his position on the couch, flipping through channels on the television. "Hey, leave that one on," Niall said from where he stood in the small kitchen. 

"Dude, Eddy talked to us about it. No need to lie," Liam mumbled and rolled his eyes. 

"Hey, can I see that ball?" Harry asked. Liam threw him the ball, and Harry threw it back at him hard, Liam dodging it in time. "So I take it you're not actually dating?" 

Harry just shook his head - he couldn't imagine what actually dating Louis would be like, he didn't want to. He was straight, and nothing could change it. Well, maybe something that might've happened with Louis, but it was a long time ago and nobody had to know about it. 

"But didn't you two used to be like, best friends?" questioned Liam, looking the slightly younger lad in the eye, an eyebrow arched high on his forehead. 

"Yes," Harry replied, "now let's not continue this conversation, okay?" 

And at that exact moment, Louis walked onto the bus, Eleanor following close behind. He sighed when he saw the other boys. "Can't a man get any time alone with his girlfriend?" 

"Louis, you're the last thing from a man," Liam joked, Louis rolling his eyes. "If you're insinuating that I'm gay, you're wrong. I have a girlfriend. Besides, that doesn't make someone any less of a man. Now, can I get alone time with Eleanor?"

"Did you tell her about what you have to do?" Niall asked, completely ignoring Louis' request. 

"He did. I think it's a great idea, we wouldn't mind having a little bit of privacy in the media," Eleanor said. 

"Yeah, and Eddy told us earlier that the plan is that you would still be a friend publicly," Louis smiled. Niall, Liam, and Harry all rolled their eyes. "Well everything will just be dandy, then," Harry mocked. 

Louis huffed, then Eleanor said, "Hey, I have to go. I'll see you later," he told Louis, giving him a kiss on the cheek as she left. 

"FIFA?" Harry asked, and threw a controller at Louis before he could reply. 

Louis silently nodded and sat down on the couch, his lips quirking up in a small smirk. 

Harry eyed the smaller boy, then told him, "And don't you dare hit me in the balls so I'll lose." 

Louis groaned internally, quite loudly if he was honest, and nodded. Harry nodded in content relief and turned on the game. 

•••

It was now a few hours later, around 2 AM, and the boys were sleeping - well, most of them. Louis was wide awake, in fact, and was about to grab Niall's guitar. He was walking by past the bunks to get the instrument, and, with a loud groan from Niall's bed, he quickly scrambled back into his bunk. 

"W...what?" Niall groggily said, then sat up in his bunk, nearly hitting his head on the ceiling. He got out of bed, walked around the bus for a few minutes to see what the noise was, then just shrugged and got back in bed. 

Louis sighed in relief that he hadn't been caught. Suddenly, he sneezed, and he was pretty sure everyone who was awake could hear it. 

Niall laughed; one of those famous laughs that made girls everywhere scream. "Who is that?!" he asked in between laughs. 

Louis stayed quiet, not sure what to do. Eventually, he announced, "Night, 'm going to bed." 

The next morning, around eight AM, Harry was hovering over Louis' sleeping form, shaking him awake. "Get up," he grumbled, "Louis, we have a meeting in an hour. Wake the fuck up."

With a loud groan, Louis sat up in his bunk and rubbed his eyes from sleep. "Do I have to?" he asked. 

"Well," Harry said, "considering this meeting is about you, I think you should come." 

"Yeah, I'll come, but not to the meeting," Louis muttered, and, with a chuckle and push from Harry, he walked to the bathroom. 

"Will you two shut up? You know I was out last night," Zayn said groggily. 

Louis came back out a minute later, his appearance not having changed at all. 

"Louis, get dressed," Harry warned, giving him a subtle glare. And yeah, that would scare Louis if it wasn't an ungodly hour in the morning. So he just shook his head and mumbled, "I'm going like this. It doesn't matter." 

"Well you look ridiculous," Harry said. 

"You look ridiculous," Louis repeated, rolling his eyes. 

"Thank you," Harry said, the little shit, while putting his arms up in the air and doing a little pirouette. Louis couldn't even keep himself from giggling, putting a hand up to his mouth. 

"Don't try to cover up your laughter. I'm funny. Admit it," smirked Harry, his dimples showing all too well, and Louis just wanted to smack them off of his face. 

"Let's go, you tosser," Louis managed to get out, walking to the door while he exaggeratedly stuck his ass out. 

•••

They were now on their way back to the bus from the meeting, sitting in the car as they waited for the traffic to go away so they could actually go somewhere. 

Louis thought about the meeting the whole ride, about the obligations they had to follow. Though he would admit it to nobody, he was honestly terrified of what could happen. He didn't know what it would do to his relationship with Eleanor, what it would do to his relationship with the other boys, the fans, and most importantly, Harry. Even though Louis Tomlinson was straight, he didn't know what he could be coming out of this. Of course he thought he wouldn't change from a silly little PR stunt, but he also wasn't so sure. 

Louis thought back to when Eddy said that he and Harry would officially "come out" tomorrow at their interview with The Today Show, how they would go on a date to the movies and dinner later, and how they were supposed to tweet "couply" things at each other daily. 

It was insane to him how quick this was all happening. It seemed like just yesterday that Louis and Harry were told to tone down their relationship, but then they just stopped being best friends. Nevertheless, they would have to pretend to be in love in front of all their fans, who were proven to be able to see through the thickest wall, the most clever disguise. 

He was so deep in thought, that he didn't even hear the third time Harry called his name, nor did he notice that they were parked and getting out of the car. "Louis," Harry said for the fourth time, clapping his hands in front of Louis' face, whilst the older boy kept staring out the window, seemingly ignoring Harry. 

This time, though, Louis actually heard him, and was snapped out of his trance. "What?" he asked, looking up at Harry. Harry just gesticulated, trying to hint that Louis needed to get out of the car if he didn't want to end up at the driver's house. 

Louis felt a blush creep up his cheeks as he slowly got out of the car, to which Harry said, "Today please, grandpa. I know you're the oldest in this band, but you don't have to act it. You didn't before. Did that meeting change you or something? You never act like this." 

Louis wanted to scream yes, yes it did. Yes, the meeting changed him. But he didn't. Of course he didn't. Since when would he tell anyone what he was thinking? Especially Harry. But for some reason, he didn't know how or why, but he could see himself dating Harry in the future, and not just for his job. Like, actually dating, with love and kisses and sex, and maybe Louis should just stop thinking about Harry because now he was in a trance again. 

What snapped Louis out of it this time, though, was the fact that Harry was pulling on his wrist, then eventually decided to throw him over his shoulder and carry him inside, and then he set Louis down on the couch, then walked away as if nothing had happened. Louis sat there in shock, but no, he was not going to think because thinking lead to trances and trances lead to Harry talking to him or touching him in some way, and Louis just didn't want that. 

Louis just wanted to remain friends with Harry, nothing more. Why was he even thinking like this? It's just for PR, it doesn't mean anything, Louis told himself the rest of the day. 

And that's how he fell asleep that night, thinking about the future (and Harry, of course, but he would tell no one that he thought about Harry at night).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi guys! I know it's been a long time, but I do want to get back into writing. I've decided that I'm going to be updating the first few chapters of this fic that I've written, then I will start writing new content. I first wrote this so long ago, so I want to make it all fresh and better before I actually start writing again. Be on the lookout for new chapters :) 
> 
> My Instagram is @queenbeetomlinson if you want to follow me over there. I'm very active on Instagram, so please contact me there if you ever have any questions
> 
> And my Twitter is @queenbeetommo :)


	2. Chapter 2

This was the day the boys would be on The Today Show. 

As the previous morning had gone, Harry had to drag Louis out of bed, though this time literally, and all five boys went out to the car, where they would be taken to the studios of The Today Show. 

"What do you think the interview will be like?" Louis asked, clearly nervous as he would not stop bouncing his leg, or playing with his fingers, or anything else he did when he was nervous. 

It was then that Harry leaned in close, put his hand on Louis' knee, and whispered in his ear, "Hey, calm down. Everything is going to be okay. I'm nervous, too, but we just have to think positive, alright? Nothing bad will happen. This is a good opportunity for us." 

And as Harry pulled away, as Louis seemed to immediately calm down, as the other three boys raised their eyebrows at what had just happened, the car parked, and they were at The Today Show. 

••• 

"Liam, come here, I need to finish your makeup. Zayn, go let Caroline finish your hair. Niall, go find Harry and Louis," came the orders of one of the stylists backstage. "Where are they? I don't know where they are," Niall said as he grabbed a pastry from the snack table. "Go find them. They're probably in their dressing rooms. Tell them we're on in ten," she replied in a hurried tone. 

"What if they hate us together? God, I feel like I'm going to throw up," Louis said, putting a hand on his stomach as he looked in the full length mirror. He could see Harry in the reflection, sitting on the couch of Louis' dressing room, tapping his fingers on his thigh, more nervous than he let off. He moved to sit down next to Harry on the couch, close enough that their thighs touched. He looked up at Harry, taking in a deep breath. 

"We just have to believe that everything will be fine. Everyone's nervous, it's not just us. They wouldn't be doing this to us if it wasn't good for us. For the band," Harry said. He looked up as there was a knock on the door, then it opened and Niall appeared, smiling as soon as he saw the two boys. "Sorry, am I interrupting something?" he said with a smirk. 

"Why are you here?" Louis asked, rolling his eyes. 

"I came to tell you that we're on in ten minutes."

"Ten minutes?" Harry asked, his eyes widening slightly. 

And surely enough, ten minutes later, Louis couldn't tell if the thumping in his ear was his heartbeat or the loud music that was playing. 

"And, everybody, welcome One Direction!" the interviewer, Sarah, smiled. The boys walked onto the stage, hundreds of fans roaring in the audience. 

"Hello, boys," Sarah said, waving. 

The boys echoed a chorus of "hello's" and "hi's" back as they took a seat on the couch, Harry purposefully sitting next to Louis. A few fans in the audience noticed this, and screamed. 

She chuckled as the screaming died down to a few fans conversing quietly. 

"I've heard that you guys have a special announcement to make, is that correct?" said Sarah, looking directly at Harry and Louis. Harry nodded, and Louis just looked down at his lap. Harry squeezed Louis' thigh, and how did Harry know that that was just what he needed? 

"But first, I have a few questions for you," Sarah said, taking a piece of paper out. 

"Sure," smiled Liam, waving to a few fans. And God, Louis wanted to be as nice as Liam, but sometimes he just couldn't. If he were in Liam's position, he probably would've said, "What questions? Are they simple questions? Would I have to think about the answer? What are they based on?" and Louis just wouldn't want to deal with it. 

He was snapped back into reality when Sarah said, "Louis?" 

"Yeah?" Louis replied, blushing softly. 

"You've written most of the songs on the new album, right?" 

"Correct, as well as Liam," said Louis. 

"And what was it like?" she asked in a tone that told Louis it wasn't the first time she had asked that question to him. 

"Uh, it was cool, I guess. Yeah, I wrote them with Liam." 

After she had asked a few boring, in Louis' opinion, questions, she asked, "Who's single? I bet all the ladies want to know." 

None of the boys raised their hands, because, well, none of them were single -- publicly at least. Niall had his new girl, Melissa, and Liam was with Sophia, Zayn with Perrie, and as for Louis and Harry, people were going to find out soon. 

"None of you?" Sarah asked, chuckling as the audience started screaming again. "I could've sworn I thought Harry was." 

"Uh, actually," Harry said, biting his lip, a nervous tone in his voice. "No, I am not. I have a..." he slightly stuttered out, glancing at Louis, then at someone backstage. As Louis looked backstage, he suddenly smiled. "Boyfriend," he said. 

There was silence in the whole room for about two seconds, then the crowd started screaming. Harry and Louis couldn't help the smiles that grew on their faces. 

It took a moment for the audience to calm down. 

When it was finally semi-quiet again, Sarah asked, "So Larry Stylinson is really a thing? How long have you been together?" 

"A few months," Louis said, smiling as he looked around the room. "Yeah, three months. We're still trying to figure things out, but we're very happy right now," Harry said with another glance backstage. 

 

•••

All day Harry thought about that interview. He thought about how nervous everyone was, but especially Louis. Ever since they had been told about this latest stunt, whenever he looked into Louis' eyes, no matter how much they reminded him of the calm ocean, he could see nerves. He decided that he didn't like that look on Louis. He'd rather the boy radiate happiness and tranquility, be the sun that he usually was. For the past few days, Louis wasn't the sun. 

And that hurt Harry for some reason. 

He wasn't so sure how he felt about the date they would be going on later that night. Of course he didn't mind hanging out with Louis, they were friends after all. He just didn't know if things had changed now that they were 'dating.' He'd gone to movies and dinners with Louis plenty of times before, but now that they would be alone, would it be different? 

His thoughts were interrupted as he was suddenly pushed into the small counter of their tour bus kitchen, where he had been previously tying his tie, getting a glimpse of small hands as he turned around, and a soft voice whispered in his ear, "Ready for tonight?" 

Of course, Harry was surprised. He could feel his heart beating in his chest as he stared down at the boy in front of him. But his mindset quickly changed as he smirked. "As ready as I'll ever be. What about you?" he inquired in an amusing tone. 

"The feeling is mutual," Louis whispered in Harry's ear, softly hitting him in the balls as he walked away, off to get dressed for the 'date.' Harry groaned and held himself. "Fuck you!" he shouted to the other side of the bus. "Right back at you!" Louis retorted from about ten feet away. 

••• 

Throughout the whole night, Harry couldn't keep his eyes off Louis. Sometimes Louis would catch him staring at him, but he would just quickly look away, taking a sip of his cold drink, or a eat a bite of the buttery, movie theatre popcorn. 

But sometimes he would catch Louis looking at him, too, and he wondered if Louis was just trying to get his attention, or if it was something else that interested him. 

When he wasn't trying to steal quick glances at Louis, he was thinking. Thinking about Louis. Or rather, the situation they were in. He had been thinking about it a lot, actually, the whole day and the previous day. 

He didn't know what exactly changed, or why anything changed, but something changed. He had been treating Louis differently, but not in a bad way. Was it the shock of everything? How it all happened so quickly? Harry couldn't tell what it was.

As he tried to fall asleep, he couldn't stop thinking. He tossed and turned, glancing at the clock on the wall as it ticked, signaling every second of sleep that he wasn't getting because of this stunt. Was he angry that he had to do this? If so, who was he angry at? Surely it couldn't be Louis. This wasn't his fault. Maybe Harry was just frustrated. Confused. Worried. He didn't know what could come out of this, even though he was promised that it would be good.

But how could this help the band? Yeah, every now and then he would look on Twitter and see all of the tweets after he and Louis did anything together. But he still didn't see why everyone cared what he and Louis did. 

He wondered how Louis felt about everything. Nervous, yeah, but surely he was just as frustrated and confused as Harry was. Was Louis laying awake just like he was, wondering about the future? He was so close to Louis; the boy was in the bunk next to him, but he didn't hear any movement that signaled that anyone else was awake. 

Harry sighed loudly, reaching for his phone for what must've been the twentieth time that night. He looked at the time, and even though it felt like days, it had only been about an hour since he went to bed. He put his phone away, watched the clock on the wall across from his bed tick, and eventually fell asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

It felt like seconds had passed by when Harry woke up again. 

He groaned, rubbed his eyes, then looked up at the figure who was shaking him awake. He couldn't quite make out who it was, as it was pitch black, but as the fuzzy blanket was taken away from him, an all too familiar voice said, "Harry, come on. We're going on an adventure." That's when he realized it was Louis. He just let out a sound of tiredness, something in between a groan and whine, and grabbed his phone, checking the time. "What?" he asked groggily. 

"We're going on an adventure," Louis repeated, and Harry could barely make out the soft but energetic smile on his face through the darkness. 

"I figured that we should spend more time alone together. I mean, if we have to act like we're in love or whatever. You know," Louis barely stuttered out, a blush creeping up into his cheeks. The truth was that he wanted to spend more time with Harry anyway, wanted to admire that dimpled smile. 

"Where are you taking me?" Harry asked, not even thinking about it as he stood up. He trusted Louis, and even though all he wanted to do was sleep, he wanted to go with the boy. He wasn't sure why he chose an unknown adventure over sleep, especially as he had had trouble falling asleep, but he stood up nonetheless. 

"I wanted to go see what was in the woods. I heard there was a lake in the woods nearby, and I thought what better time to go than at night. It's going to be so gorgeous, Harry," Louis rambled, and Harry could tell that he was excited. The way he spoke, the way he moved his hands around, the way Harry could make out a bright smile even in the darkness. 

A few minutes later, Harry had changed into a t-shirt and shorts, and the two boys were walking off of the bus. "How are we supposed to get there? You driving?" Harry asked. 

"Yeah, I got the keys to the driver's car," Louis said, taking the keys out of the pocket of his shorts. He dangled them around, and Harry could imagine jingle bells. 

"Are you sure we're allowed to drive it?" 

Louis just shrugged, walking over to the small car that was near the bus. "They won't find out, now will they?" 

"What happens if we get caught?" Harry chuckled, not even caring about the possibility of someone finding out. 

"We won't. Everybody is sleeping," Louis said, an amused smile on his face as he sat down in the driver's seat, starting the car. 

Louis took his phone out of his pocket and unlocked it, and Harry watched him the few minutes he was on it. He noticed the way Louis' tongue poked out of his mouth in concentration, how his phone seemed huge compared to his little hands, simple things he had not noticed before. 

"What are you doing?" Harry asked softly. 

"I'm looking up the directions. I don't actually know where this place is yet," Louis said, then handed his phone to Harry. "Can you tell me the directions?" he asked as he started to drive, turning onto a main road. 

After a few minutes on the road, Harry said, "Hey, turn up here," and Louis did, turning onto a dirt road. He soon parked the car in a designated parking area. He smiled as he what looked like a forest leading into a lake. "I think this is it," he said, taking his phone back from Harry and getting out of the car. 

They walked around for a few minutes, just admiring the beauty of the forest in the middle of the night. The moon was shining through the trees, barely casting a shadow behind the two boys. Most of the animals were asleep, but Harry could hear the owls hoot and crickets chirp. 

They soon reached a big rock that was sitting near the shore of the lake, and Louis walked over to it once he saw it. "Can we sit here for a little bit?" he asked, already climbing onto the rock. 

"Need help?" Harry joked before climbing on as well, sitting down and looking at Louis with a smile. 

"Beautiful, innit?" Louis asked, a hint of a smile on his face, his soft skin illuminated by the moonlight. Harry noticed how the moon seemed to dance over the side of Louis' face. The shadows created perfect contours in his already amazing cheekbones, the light somehow made his lips seem pinker. He noticed how long the boy's eyelashes were, how his eyebrows arched perfectly. He seemed at peace, just admiring the lake. Harry wanted him to always feel like that. 

"Yeah, it is beautiful," Harry said softly, his lips curling up into a small smile. 

They sat on the rock for a few more minutes, just admiring the water. It was a warm night, with a gentle breeze that made the air ever so slightly crisp. In the silence, the sounds of the crickets grew louder. 

"Let's go swimming," Louis said suddenly, turning to look at Harry. 

"What?" Harry asked, watching Louis closely. 

"You heard me," Louis smiled. 

"In our clothes?" Harry asked, raising an eyebrow. 

"Why not?" Louis smiled. 

Harry just shrugged and stood up, swiftly taking his shirt off. Louis took off his, then they both slipped out of their shoes before starting the short walk to the shore. 

Louis walked into the water, turning to look back at Harry. "Come on, what are you waiting for?" he asked excitedly, going in further so that the water was at his hips. "It's warm." 

Harry walked over to where Louis was standing, the water at his thighs. "Do you want to swim to the other side?" 

Louis nodded and smiled, then said, "Race you," before taking off. Harry laughed and started to swim, quickly catching up to him. 

After about ten minutes, all of which the two boys were so focused on racing each other that they couldn't think about anything else, they reached the shore. Both boys panted as they sat down in the sand, Harry wiping off his face. "Wow," Louis chuckled breathlessly. "I feel like I just ran a marathon. I need to work out more." 

Harry just smiled at him, before glancing up at the sky. "Look, there's the Orion constellation." 

Louis looked up at the sky as he lay on the ground. He looked up at the stars, infatuated by what he saw. He had a look of awe on his face, a small, relaxed smile forming. Harry watched him for a few seconds, before laying down next to him. 

"Did you know that it was named after a hunter in Greek mythology?" Harry asked, turning his head to look at him. Louis just hummed in indication that he was listening, his gaze still focused on the night sky. 

"It's bordered by the Taurus constellation to the northwest, and Gemini to the northeast," Harry continued. "It's seven brightest stars form a distinctive hourglass-shaped pattern." 

As mean as this sounds, Louis wasn't listening to what Harry was saying. He just wanted to listen to his voice, the way it would become deeper when he was excited and just rambling about things. He let a soft smile take over his face, and he closed his eyes. He didn't even think about the future, he just soaked in the peacefulness of the present, not worried about anything that was to come. 

••• 

It was still the early hours of the morning when Harry and Louis got back to the bus. Their hair was damp, they were shivering, and they could barely keep their eyes open. They slowly opened the door, as not to wake anyone, and sneaked onto the bus, tiptoeing around clothes on the floor. It was hard because they could barely see, but they still managed to make it to their bunks even in the darkness. They whispered out a goodnight to each other before laying down. 

What both boys didn't know was that after they lay down, neither of them fell asleep. Instead, they lay there with smiles on their faces, suddenly feeling liberated and optimistic for the future. They were excited to see what this would bring to the band. For the first time since Eddy had talked to them about it, they weren't nervous. They weren't sure how long it would be before they would go back to being on edge, but they just wanted to soak up how they felt in the present.

As they lay there in the darkness, staring up at the ceiling of their bunks, fleecy blankets draped over them, they thought and thought until they soon fell asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my Instagram is @queenbeetomlinson if you want to go follow me over there for updates and larry edits  
> My Twitter is @queenbeetommo


	4. Chapter 4

Louis was standing in front of the mirror in the bus bathroom, buttoning up his shirt. He quickly tucked it in, then grabbed his tie that had been resting on the counter. He tied it, then sighed as he looked into the mirror. It had been about two weeks since that night with Harry, and he hadn't talked to him much since then, besides in interviews and at rehearsals. He felt almost as if he missed that night. 

He ran his hand through his hair as he walked out of the bathroom. He felt frustrated; he really didn't want to do this today for some reason. He couldn't exactly pinpoint why. 

"Ready? I'll pick you up at your hotel," Louis texted Eleanor with a sigh. He sat down on the small couch, waiting for the reply as he fiddled around with his fingers. When his phone dinged, he checked it, and stood up once he saw that Eleanor had replied. 

"I'll be there in ten," Louis texted back. He went outside to his driver, a bored look on his face. "Hey," he mumbled to the driver, not really wanting to make conversation at the moment. He almost felt guilty about how he was feeling indifferent about his date with his girlfriend. As the driver started driving, Louis looked out of the window, wishing that he was in bed instead, or really doing anything else besides going on a date with his girlfriend. 

He just stared out of the window for the whole ride, and pretty soon they were pulling up in front of the entrance of Eleanor's hotel. Eleanor was waiting for the car, smiling once it pulled up. She quickly walked around to the other side and opened the door. She sat down, and Louis said with a pretend smile, "You look beautiful," even though he felt as if he almost didn't mean it. He decided that he was tired. That's why he wasn't really feeling like himself. 

Eleanor blushed and buckled up. "Where are we going?" she asked, her eyes on Louis, who was looking down at his phone. She sighed, then noticed the screen was off. "Hey, Lou?" 

Louis looked up at her. "Yeah? Sorry. I got a text from my mum." And now he was blatantly lying to his girlfriend. What was wrong with him? 

"I can see that your screen is off. Is something wrong? You don't seem like yourself," Eleanor said worriedly. 

Louis just shrugged and looked back down at his lap, mumbling an 'I'm fine,' and avoiding eye contact with her. 

"Is it that stunt they're making you do? We're not going to let that ruin our relationship if that's what you're upset about," Eleanor tried to console him. 

Louis just nodded and looked back up at her, giving her a small smile. "Yeah, that's been on my mind all day. Thank you. That makes me feel better," he lied. He didn't know what the truth was, but he did know that that wasn't it. He hoped his fidgeting on the ride wasn't too obvious. He felt tired, yet restless at the was time. He felt as if he just wanted to get the stunt over with, as he feared that's what was hurting his relationship. 

Louis watched Eleanor as she was on her phone, not trying to help him anymore. He noticed the way she was looking down at it with a frustrated look on her face. He almost didn't feel guilty, even though he knew it was his fault. 

Soon enough, the driver parked at the Italian restaurant and the pair climbed out of the car. Because Louis was quicker to approach the door, he opened it and walked in, not even glancing behind him at Eleanor. Eleanor just frowned as she grabbed it before it closed, walking in after him. 

They were promptly led to a table upon the server recognizing who Louis was, and they were seated. The server handed them menus and walked away. While skimming through the menu, Louis could barely focus on the meals as the voice in the back of his head telling him he didn't want to be there felt like an itch that he couldn't get rid of. 

"What are you getting?" he finally decided to ask Eleanor, just planning on getting whatever she got. 

"I'm getting the grilled calamari. You?" she asked as she set her menu down. 

"Yeah, I'll get that, too," he said as he closed his menu. When the waiter came back, he took their orders, and Louis added, "Oh, and can I get a glass of Merlot?" The waiter nodded and wrote it down. "Your food will be here shortly." 

"You know I don't like it when you drink," Eleanor said to Louis disapprovingly. 

"I just need one, to calm myself, you know?" Louis asked, biting his lip. 

"Are you still feeling anxious?" she asked with a sigh, not knowing how to help. 

"I'm fine," Louis snapped, sounding irritated. Eleanor just let out another sigh and took out her phone, deciding to just ignore Louis until the food arrived. 

As the night passed, Louis had more than one drink. By the time they were walking out of the restaurant, he was intoxicated, Eleanor practically dragging him to the car. It didn't help when cameras started to flash, almost a dozen paparazzi talking to them, wondering why Louis was walking out of a restaurant with Eleanor if he had just come out with Harry. Everything seemed like a blur to Louis though. He couldn't make out exactly what they were saying, the flashes fucked up his vision, and the fact that he could barely walk made it seem impossible to get to the car. After what seemed like forever, but was really only a couple of minutes, Eleanor was helping Louis sit down in the car and buckle himself in, then sat down as well. 

"Are you okay?" she asked him, clearly worried. His eyes were closed, and he was facing down. 

Louis just nodded, a slight frown and look of defeat on his face. Eleanor decided to leave him alone for the rest of the ride, knowing she wouldn't get much else out of him. 

When they finally reached the bus, she helped him out, holding onto his wrist to help guide him to the entrance of the bus. She knocked on the door, as she didn't have a key to get in and she knew Louis was probably too drunk to make out her request. Harry opened the door, a look of confusion on his face at someone knocking on the door, which quickly turned to a frown when he realized what state Louis was in. 

Louis looked awful. His hair was sweaty, his eyes were red and bloodshot, and he looked tired. Exhausted. Harry stared for a moment or two, then quickly reached out to help Louis in. Eleanor followed him in, still holding onto him. Harry led Louis to the couch, wanting to make sure the boy got rest and anything else he needed. 

Even in his drunken state, Louis could feel the way Harry put his hand on his back to help guide him, could feel the ghost of Harry's large hand as he removed it. Louis liked how Harry's hand felt. He didn't even notice when Eleanor let go of his wrist, too absorbed in the way Harry had a worried expression on his face as he talked to Eleanor. He barely noticed when Eleanor kissed him on the cheek and left. 

It felt like hours had passed by when Harry asked, "Do you need anything? Water?" 

Louis snapped himself out and nodded, looking away from Harry to avoid being sucked in again. "Yeah...," he mumbled. 

Harry promptly went to the little kitchen to grab him a bottle of water, opening it for him and carefully handing it over. Louis just held it in his hands, chewing on his bottom lip as he looked down at the floor. Harry noticed that he seem distant. 

"Hey, do you want to watch a movie? Or would you rather go straight to bed?" he asked in a soft tone, trying to get the boy's attention again. Louis just looked up at him, barely nodding. "Yeah, a movie sounds fine," he said quietly. Harry just let out a soft sigh and grabbed a blanket, handing it to Louis before grabbing the remote. 

By the time he had picked out a movie for them to watch, he heard soft snoring next to him. He looked over at Louis and smiled a little as he saw that he was already asleep. He stood back up, picking Louis up bridal style, and bringing him to his bunk. "Shh," he whispered as Louis started to stir. He carefully laid him in his bed, as to not wake him, and closed the curtain of his bunk.

Harry had done this before with Louis, but nobody knew. He wouldn't tell anyone that he gently caressed Louis' cheek every once in a while as he fell asleep. Nobody would know that he always made sure that Louis had everything he needed. 

He looked up from the couch as Niall and Zayn walked onto the bus, talking rather loudly. Harry shushed them and motioned to Louis' bunk, sighing a little in annoyance as they quickly became quiet. 

"Louis' asleep already? He's usually the last one to go to bed," Niall whispered with a chuckle. 

"He's drunk," Harry replied in a quiet voice. 

"Wasn't he going on a date with Eleanor?" Zayn asked as he sat down next to Harry. 

"Yeah, I guess they went out. I don't know what happened. I'll talk to him about it in the morning," Harry said, flipping through channels on the tv. 

"Has he seemed like himself lately?" Zayn said, subtly seeming worried. 

"I don't know," Harry sighed. "I think something is going on between him and Eleanor. He always gets like this when he fights with her." 

"But why would he take her on a date if they were mad at each other?" Niall asked, the door of the bus opening; Liam was walking in. 

"What's going-?" Liam started to say, whispering, "on," as Harry put a finger over his mouth. 

"We're worried about Louis," Niall said. 

"What about him? Is he still out with Eleanor?" Liam frowned, looking around the bus as he sat down next to the boys on the couch. 

"He's asleep. He came home drunk. I know that's not strange for him, but I think he hasn't been himself lately. We think it's something about him and Eleanor being in a fight," Harry said, chewing on his bottom lip. 

"But didn't he go on a date with her tonight?" Liam asked, confused. 

"That's what we're trying to figure out," Zayn said. 

They all sat in silence for a while, until Niall stood up. "I'm going to bed. Let's just ask him about it tomorrow, yeah?"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment what you would like to see for this fic in the future!


	5. Chapter 5

Louis was writing something in a journal, scribbling away at the piece of paper. His eyebrows were furrowed, and his tongue stuck out slightly. He was curled up on the couch of the hotel suite all the boys had to share. It was big enough, though, with a kitchen, a bathroom, and two bedrooms that each had two beds in them. There was a common area with a couch, where Louis was lucky enough to have been voted to sleep on. He knew it was because he was the smallest. 

He sighed as he erased something on his paper, wiping the shavings onto the floor. 

"Lou, clean that up. This isn't the bus," Liam scolded from the kitchen, where he was preparing lunch for him and Louis, making Louis roll his eyes. 

Why was Liam always the one to say something when Louis did something wrong? It was quite annoying, in fact. Even in trivial situations like this, he always had to tell him off. 

"Shut up, Liam. I'm trying to do something. You want songs for the album, don't you?" Louis said back. 

"Doesn't look like you're getting much done with all that erasing you're doing," Liam replied. Why was he such a smart mouth? 

Louis just sighed and went back to his journal, his pencil in between his teeth. He thought for a minute, then eventually just gave up and closed the book. 

"We have rehearsals today, right?" he called out to Liam. 

Liam just nodded at him and plated their sandwiches, tossing over a bottle of cold water to Louis. Louis grabbed it and put it on the coffee table, where Liam set down the plates once he walked into the common area. 

"Where are the other boys?" Louis asked curiously as he picked up his sandwich, taking a big bite. He had a tiny bit of mustard on his cheek. 

"Zayn's out with Niall shopping, or 'exploring' or whatever the fuck he called it, and I don't know what Harry's doing." 

Louis nodded as he took another bite of his sandwich, then stayed quiet for a while. He just held the sandwich in his hands, looking at it. He wasn't really feeling that hungry, so he just put it back on the plate, planning to save the rest for later. He hadn't been eating that much the past few days, ever since he got drunk on his date with Eleanor. He just passed it off as jet lag, though, since they had been traveling. 

"Lou, you okay?" Liam asked in a soft tone, interrupting Louis' little trance. He did seem distant lately. 

Louis looked up at him and nodded. He grabbed his phone from the table and opened the messages app, his thumb lingering over Harry's contact before he redirected and pressed on Eleanor's. He pulled up the keyboard, about to type something, but just closed his phone with a sigh. 

Liam noticed all of this. 

"When was the last time you talked to her?" he asked knowingly, his voice still soft.  

Louis just shrugged. "I'm just tired. I think I need to take a nap. Do you think Zayn will mind if I take his bed? I would feel a little awkward sleeping on the couch with you right there," he said with a light chuckle, trying to seem less bored and faraway than he felt. He felt like the last few days felt exactly the same, where he was following some kind of mental routine, even though he was doing different things everyday. He just felt indifferent. 

He got up and walked to Zayn and Niall's room, closing the door behind him. He laid down on the bed, going on his phone for a few minutes. He checked the time, refreshed his social media over and over again, checked his messages, just waiting for something new to happen.

It took a while for him to fall asleep, but eventually it did happen. 

In the other room, Liam had just finished eating his lunch when Harry walked in, making him look up. He had a goofy smile on, and his cheeks were pink. Liam raised his eyebrows with a chuckle. 

"You good, mate?" he asked, standing up with his paper plate. 

Harry watched Liam throw it away as he said, "Do you mind if I have a girl over? We'll be in the room. Just don't come in. We'll try to be quiet." 

"Um.... I guess," Liam hesitated, not because he wanted to control Harry's life in any way, but because he knew what Harry meant by 'we'll try to be quiet.'

Harry's gave him a satisfied smile, walking closer to the open door again to motion someone in. He took the girl's hand as they walked to the room, barely hearing Liam's, "Not on my bed!" before the door was slammed shut. 

A little while later, when all of the boys except Harry and Louis were in the common area, Louis walked out of his room. He rubbed his eyes and stretched, letting out a yawn. He glanced at the other boys, before knocking on Harry's door once before opening it. He needed to grab his jacket that Liam had borrowed earlier that day. 

He was not expecting what he saw at all. 

Harry had the girl against the wall, her legs wrapped around his waist and her arms holding onto his broad shoulders tightly as he fucked her hard. He stood there for a moment, speechless. He felt insecure and almost... jealous? 

Before Louis could turn to walk out of the room, Harry had heard the door open over their loud moans. He quickly pulled out of her and covered his crotch with his hands, as he grabbed Harry's t shirt from the floor and covered herself up with it. 

Louis wasn't sure what to do, but just standing there, not saying anything for about a minute before Harry finally said something probably wasn't the best idea. 

"What the hell are you doing in here?" Harry asked, scowling at the smaller boy. He wasn't exactly mad, but he was very annoyed and frustrated. 

"I, uh, I just needed something. Sorry," Louis mumbled out as he grabbed the jacket from the other side of the room, pretending he needed it for whatever reason. He didn't make eye contact as he quickly closed the door, immediately going back to Zayn and Niall's room.

Louis didn't fucking know why he cared. He didn't know why he could feel his heart drop into his stomach once he saw Harry fucking that girl. He had never walked in on any of the boys with a girl before, maybe that's why he felt so weird. He just needed some fresh air. 

He put on the jacket and walked to the door, trying to seem as nonchalant as he could when he waved to the other boys. He walked out, going to the elevator. He went down the elevator and walked to the door, going outside. 

As the crisp October air hit him, Louis took in a deep breath. He had left his phone in the room so he could have a proper break from everything. He felt a lot calmer, but couldn't push the image of Harry fucking that girl out of his head. It made him realize that he had never done anything like that with Eleanor. Of course they had done dirty things, but they didn't go all the way yet. Louis decided he didn't want to, not yet at least (even though he knew it would probably never happen). 

The sun was starting to set, making the temperature drop. He was cold, but he didn't care. He just wanted to be outside and free. 

Ever since he had started that stunt, going on dates with Eleanor seemed like a chore. Maybe it was because it was more work, as they couldn't be seen because that would ruin his stunt with Harry, or because he just didn't want to. Louis felt bored with her. Even the adrenaline from their concerts wasn't enough; he yearned for a feeling of new excitement again. Being with Harry made him feel like that, because what he did with Harry made him feel almost like a rebel. Even though their team gave them specific directions for each day he would spend with Harry, he still felt like he wasn't supposed to kiss the boy or hold his large, warm hands. 

He looked around at everyone on the street, wondering what their lives were like. He loved being in a different country where everything was strange and new to him. He liked the fact that in the smaller cities they went to that were just outside of the big city they were playing in, nobody recognized him. Sometimes he just wanted the freedom to walk around without a care. 

And that's what he did that night. He stayed out for a while, with everything and nothing on his mind. If he teared up a bit a few times because of everything that was frustrating him then nobody had to know. 

A little while later, the boys heard a knock at the door. They had been playing a video game, Harry included; the girl went back home after Louis had walked in. 

"I'll get it," Harry said and paused the game as he stood up. He lifted his arms up into the air, letting out a soft groaning sound as the tight muscles stretched. He took the few steps to the door and opening it, biting his lip when he saw Louis. His eyes were slightly red and glossy like he'd been crying. 

Louis' breath hitched in his throat when he saw Harry.

"Um, thanks. I just left my key here, so I couldn't get in. Sorry," the smaller boy said quietly, walking in. 

"No, it's fine. We were just playing a game. She went home," Harry said knowingly. He felt terrible for snapping at Louis. 

"Where did you go?" Niall asked Louis in a curious tone, trying to relieve the obvious tension. 

"I just walked around the city. I didn't really do much," Louis chuckled softly, chewing on his lip as he sat down next to Liam. 

"We ordered pizza a little while ago. It should be here any minute," Liam said as Harry sat down on the opposite side of Louis and started the game again after Louis grabbed a controller. Louis noticed this, and tensed up a little. He tried to relax, though, hoping he could forget about what had happened. 

It wasn't a big deal, Louis kept telling himself, and soon enough, there was another knock at the door. This time it was the pizza, so Liam paused the game and stood up, grabbing his wallet from the kitchen counter. He opened the door and took the pizzas, before he paid and closed it, putting the two boxes on the coffee table. 

"Who wants beer?" he asked as he pulled a twelve pack out of the mini fridge. He set it down next to the pizza, watching as everyone grabbed a can. 

After he had a few beers, Louis felt lighter. And he felt better about everything. He didn't know if it was just the beer talking, or if he realized that the whole situation would be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please comment anything you would like to see or any suggestions/criticism you have! And leave kudos if you liked it :)

**Author's Note:**

> Instagram: @queenbeetomlinson  
> Twitter: @queenbeetommo  
> Wattpad: @NiallHoran3737


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